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Responding to the Federal Funding Crisis: What Farmers and Connected Nonprofits are Experiencing and What Funders Can Do
February 19, 2025 @ 12:30 pm – 1:45 pm PST
This conversation is co-sponsored by Funders for Regenerative Agriculture.
Join SAFSF for a critical conversation about the immediate and long-term impacts of the federal funding freeze on farmers and connected nonprofits. An expert panel of farming advocates and policy specialists will break down:
- What federal programs are being impacted by the funding freeze
- Immediate financial implications for farming operations and nonprofit staffing and infrastructure
- Alternative funding sources and rapid response financial strategies that funders can support now and in the future
- Ongoing advocacy efforts at the federal level
We also encourage you to review the following resources developed by Dãnia Davy, Founder, Land & Liberation
Speakers
Caitlin Arnold Stephano, Hotline Program Manager, Farm Aid
Caitlin joined Farm Aid in the fall of 2021 as the Hotline Program Manager. Caitlin grew up riding the tractor at her Grandfather’s cherry and apple farm in Eastern Washington state, and has been working in agriculture, farmer organizing, and advocacy since 2006. Caitlin holds a Masters in Sustainable Food Systems with a focus on farmer mental health. She currently lives in Southern Maine with her family, and loves exploring the coastal nooks and crannies, walking in the woods, and growing her garden.
Dãnia Davy, Founder, Land & Liberation, LLC
Dãnia is the founder of Land & Liberation, LLC, a consultancy promoting liberatory relationships between humans, natural and financial resources, and land. She teaches “Examining Food System Equity through Critical Race Theory” at Vermont Law School, served as Senior Policy Advisor for the US Southeast Region at Oxfam, Director of Land Retention and Advocacy at the Federation of Southern Cooperatives/Land Assistance Fund, and started her legal career as a Skadden Fellow at the Land Loss Prevention Project. Dãnia earned her J.D. at the University of Virginia School of Law and her A.B. in Africana Studies & Community Health at Brown University. Dãnia currently serves on the boards of Agrarian Trust, Farmers Legal Action Group, and A Place Matters, Inc.
Seanicaa Edwards Herron, Founder & Executive Director, Freedmen Heirs Foundation
Seanicaa is a respected agricultural economist and market analyst with an impressive 20-year career trajectory across academia, the private sector, government and nonprofit roles. At the helm of the Freedmen Heirs Foundation Inc., which she co-founded, Seanicaa is actively forging paths to dismantle systemic barriers faced by Black farmers in U.S. agriculture. This vital nonprofit organization focuses on bridging the widening gap between Black farmers and the marketplace, aiming to eradicate agricultural inequities by facilitating access to technical assistance, capital resources, and new market opportunities. Seanicaa earned both her Bachelor’s degree in Agribusiness and a Master’s degree in Agricultural Economics from Mississippi State University, further solidifying her profound commitment to advancing the field of agriculture.
Maisah Khan, SHOT Fund Partnerships Manager, Regenerative Agriculture Foundation
As the Fund Partnerships Manager, Maisah is looking forward to helping rural nonprofits and historically underserved farmers identify, pursue, and manage public funding opportunities that align with their mission and work.
Maisah comes to RAF with over a decade of experience in grassroots nonprofit work and federal policy advocacy. She was the Policy Director for the Mississippi River Network and before that the Water Policy Director for the Missouri Coalition for the Environment. Prior to that, she served as an appointee in the Obama Administration for the U.S. Department of Energy, focusing on international climate change policy and clean energy deployment. Maisah holds a Masters of Environmental Management from the Yale School of Environment. Her family ties to Bangladesh keep her grounded in our shared movement for climate change solutions.
The Soil Health Opportunities and Tools (SHOT) Fund is an initiative between Rural Climate Partnership and Regenerative Agriculture Foundation designed to connect farmers and the nonprofits that serve them with existing public funding opportunities such as the $18 billion available under the Inflation Reduction Act. The Fund focuses on enhancing capacity support, providing innovative financing, offering technical assistance, and promoting market reform to support regenerative and climate-smart agriculture all while ensuring equitable access to public funding.
